The Great Lakes today hold an estimated six quadrillion gallons of water — a fifth, or 20 percent, of all the drinkable water on the surface of Earth. Lake Erie is the fourth-largest Great Lake and the world’s twelfth largest freshwater lake. Lake Erie is about 210 miles long, 57 miles wide. Bordered by Michigan, Ohio, Pennsylvania, New York and Ontario, it has 856 miles of shoreline, giving it a surface area of just over 9,900 square miles — slightly larger than the state of Vermont. Having a modern water treatment facility strategically located next to Lake Erie has placed Avon Lake Municipal Utilities in the enviable position of being able to supply the area’s growing need for high quality drinking water.